Prime Minister's Office
English rendering of PM’s address at the Women Self Help Groups Conference in Sheopur, Madhya Pradesh
Bharat Mata ki – Jai!
Bharat Mata ki – Jai!
Bharat Mata ki – Jai!
The Governor of Madhya Pradesh, Shri Mangubhai Patel, the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Shri Shivraj Singh ji Chouhan, my colleagues from the Union Council of Ministers, the Ministers of the Government of Madhya Pradesh, MPs, MLAs and all other dignitaries who came in large numbers! I salute all the mothers and sisters associated with Self-Help Groups who are present here in such a large number and who are at the centre of this program.
All of you are welcome to the Self-Help Group Conference. Just now our Chief Minister and Narendra Singh Ji Tomar mentioned my birthday. I do not remember  often, but if there is time and there is no program then I usually try to visit my mother, touch her feet and seek her blessings. But today I could not visit my mother. But today lakhs of mothers working hard in the tribal areas and villages of Madhya Pradesh are blessing me. My mother would be very pleased today that his son could not visit her, but lakhs of mothers have blessed him. My mother will be very happy today. The blessings of such a large number of mothers, sisters and daughters are a great strength for all of us. This is a great energy and motivation. And for me, the mothers, sisters and daughters of the country are my biggest shield, source of strength and my inspiration.
Today is another important day, my brothers and sisters, who have come in such a huge number. Vishwakarma Puja is also being celebrated today. I see such a large gathering of Self-Help Groups on Vishwakarma Jayanti as a great feature in itself. I extend many best wishes to all of you and all the countrymen on Vishwakarma Puja. Today, I am also happy that the cheetah has returned to the soil of India after 75 years. A few hours ago, I had the privilege of releasing cheetahs in Kuno National Park. I want to make a request to all of you. Should I make the request? If you want then should I make a request to everyone? Should I request this forum also? Everyone says that I should. Today we want to give a message to the whole world from this ground. Today eight cheetahs have returned to our country's soil after almost 75 years from far away Africa. They have travelled a long distance. They are our important guests. I want to make a request in honour of these guests? Will you do it? Let us all stand up and welcome our guests by clapping with both hands. Clap loudly and we also welcome the people of the country who have given us these cheetahs and who have fulfilled our long-standing wish. Clap loudly, my friends. Applaud these cheetahs. I am very grateful to you.
I congratulate the people of the country and especially the people of Madhya Pradesh on this historic occasion. But more than that, I extend a special greeting to all of you, the people of this region. India is very huge. There is a lot of forest too. Wild animals are also there in many places. But why did the Indian government decide to bring these cheetahs here? Have you ever imagined? That is the biggest thing. These cheetahs have been handed over to you because we have faith in you. I have full faith that no matter the problems that you might face, you would not let any harm come to the cheetahs. Therefore, I have come here to give you the responsibility of these eight cheetahs and I trust you because the people of this country have never betrayed my trust. The people of Madhya Pradesh have never betrayed my trust and I have full faith in the people of Sheopur that they will not betray my trust. Today 10 lakh saplings are also being planted in the state by Self-Help Groups in Madhya Pradesh. Your organized effort to protect the environment is going to provide a new energy to India's love for the environment and the country which sees God even in plants.
Friends,
There is a huge difference between the India of the last century and the new India of this century in the form of representation of our ‘Nari Shakti’ . In today's new India, the flag of ‘Nari Shakti’ is fluttering from Panchayat Bhawan to Rashtrapati Bhavan. I am told that one of my tribal sisters is working as the President of the Zilla Panchayat in Sheopur district. About 17,000 sisters have been elected as public representatives across Madhya Pradesh in the recently concluded Panchayat elections. This is a sign of big change, a call for big change.
Friends,
The daughters of the country have been second to none right from the armed struggle to Satyagraha in the freedom struggle. Today, when India is celebrating the ‘Amrit Mahotsav’ of its independence, we all have seen the magnificent work done by our sisters and Women Self-Help Groups when everybody hoisted the Tricolor on their house. The Tricolors made by you added to the national pride. The ‘Nari Shakti’ accepted every challenge and rose to every occasion from making masks and PPE kits in large quantities during the Corona period with the intention of serving mankind in that hour of crisis to making millions of Tricolours and created a new belief in the country through their entrepreneurship and gave an example of women’s power. Therefore, I want to make a very responsible statement today. I want to say this on the basis of my experience of the last 20-22 years of governance. When 10-12 sisters come together and form a group and start an initiative, you are a Self Help Group. When you begin your work, you take one step at a time and try to collect some money from here and there. Till then you are a Self Help Group. But I see that these Self-Help Groups become National Help Groups very soon because of your untiring efforts and determination. You might have been Self-Help Groups in the past, but today you have become National Help Groups by helping the nation. This strength of Women Self-Help Groups is today committed to play a very important role in the making of a developed India, a self-reliant India, in the ‘Amrit Kaal’ of independence.
Friends,
It has been my experience that success is assured in any sector where there is an increase in the representation of women. The success of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan is a great example which has been led by women. Today more and more sisters and daughters are being employed in management whether it is agriculture in villages, animal husbandry, digital services, education, banking, insurance, marketing, storage or nutrition. I am satisfied that the Deen Dayal Antyodaya Yojana is playing an important role in this regard. Look at the work of the sisters, how they handle various fronts. Some women are doing wonderful work by taking training as ‘Pashu Sakhi’, ‘Krishi Sakhi’, ‘Bank Sakhi’, ‘Poshan Sakhi’, etc. Jal Jeevan Mission is also a great example of your successful leadership and participation. Just now I got a chance to talk to one of my sisters. In this campaign to supply water through pipes, seven crore new water connections have been given in just three years. Out of these, 40 lakh families have been provided tap water in Madhya Pradesh and wherever tap water is reaching, mothers and sisters bless the double engine government. I credit the mothers and sisters of my country for this successful campaign. I am told that today the management of more than 3,000 tap water projects in Madhya Pradesh is in the hands of Self-Help Groups. They have become National Help Groups. Be it the participation of sisters in ‘Pani Samiti’ , maintenance of pipelines or testing water, sisters and daughters are doing very commendable work. The kits which have been distributed today are an attempt to increase the role of sisters and daughters in water management.
Friends,
We have helped in every way to empower Self-Help Groups in the last eight years. Today more than eight crore sisters across the country have joined this campaign. In a way, eight crore families are involved in this work. Our goal is that at least one woman, be it a sister, daughter or mother from every rural family, should be associated with this campaign. More than 40 lakh sisters of Madhya Pradesh are also associated with Self-Help Groups. The assistance given under the National Livelihood Mission in the five years before 2014 has increased by about 13 times in the last seven years. Where earlier every self-help group used to get loans up to Rs 10 lakh without guarantee, now this limit has also been doubled i.e. from 10 lakh to 20 lakh rupees. Financial assistance ranging from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 3 crore is being given to Self-Help Groups associated with food processing to set up new units. See how much trust the government has on mothers and sisters, on their honesty, on their efforts, in their ability, that it agrees to give 3 crore rupees to these groups.
Friends,
Our government is working continuously to create new possibilities for women entrepreneurs in the village economy. We are trying to take the local products of every district to the big markets through One District One Product. Women Self-Help Groups are also getting huge benefits from this. A short while ago, I had the opportunity to interact with the sisters associated with the One District One Product campaign here. I also got to see some of the products. They have also gifted some of the products to me. These products made by rural sisters are priceless not only for me but for the whole country. I am happy that the government of our Shivraj ji in Madhya Pradesh is making special efforts to take such products to the market. The government has created many rural markets for the sisters belonging to Self-Help Groups. I am told that the Self-Help Groups have sold products worth more than Rs 500 crore in these markets. Rs. 500 crores! That is, all this money has reached the sisters of the villages through their hard work.
Friends,
Our tribal sisters are doing commendable work by converting the forest produce in the tribal areas into magnificent products. Lakhs of tribal sisters of the country, including Madhya Pradesh, are taking advantage of the Pradhan Mantri Van Dhan Yojana. The products made by the tribal sisters in Madhya Pradesh are being highly appreciated. Under the PM Kaushal Vikas Yojana, new skilling centers in tribal areas will give further impetus to such efforts.
Mothers and sisters,
Nowadays, the trend of online shopping is on the rise. Therefore, a special section has been created for your products on the GeM, i.e. the Government e-market portal, named 'Saras'. You can sell your products through this directly to the government departments. For example, wood carving is very popular in Sheopur. It has a huge demand in the country. I request you to get yourself registered in this GeM as much as possible.
Friends,
This month of September is being celebrated as ‘Poshan’  Month in the country. With the efforts of India, the United Nations has declared the year 2023 to be celebrated internationally as the year of coarse cereals. Madhya Pradesh is one of the leading states in the country in terms of the nutritious coarse cereal. It has a rich tradition especially in our tribal areas. Coarse cereals like Kodo, Kutki, Jowar, Bajra and Ragi are being encouraged continuously by our government. And I have decided that if food is to be served to any foreign guest, then there should be some coarse grains in it. The produce of my small farmer should also be served on the plate of the foreign guests. There are a lot of opportunities for Self-Help Groups in this regard.
Friends,
There was a time when mothers and sisters had many problems in the household and their role in household decisions was very limited. Such was the situation in many homes that if father and son were talking about business and if the mother stepped out of the kitchen she was told by either her son or her husband to go back to kitchen and do the household chores so that they could discuss their business. Today it is not so. Today, the importance of the opinion of mothers and sisters is growing in the family as well. If this change has happened today, our government has made efforts in a planned manner in this regard. Earlier, there were no such deliberate efforts. Since 2014, the country has been engaged in enhancing the dignity of women and solving the problems faced by women. Earlier there were many problems due to the absence of toilets or the problems caused due to the smoke of burning fire in the kitchen. One had to travel two to four kilometers to fetch water. You know all these things very well. Your life has been made easier by building more than 11 crore toilets in the country, giving Ujjwala gas connections to more than 9 crore people and providing tap water to crores of families.
Mothers and sisters,
You know better the problems during pregnancy earlier. There was no proper food intake and there was also lack of checkup facilities. That's why we started the Matri Vandana Yojana. Under this scheme, more than 11,000 crore rupees were directly transferred to the bank accounts of pregnant women. The pregnant sisters of Madhya Pradesh have also received about Rs 1300 crore in their accounts under this scheme. Free treatment up to Rs 5 lakh being provided under the Ayushman Bharat Yojana has also helped the sisters of poor families a lot.
Mothers and sisters,
The country is experiencing excellent results of the ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’ campaign today. To enable the daughters to study properly and they do not have to leave the school in the middle, separate toilets were built for the daughters in the schools and sanitary pads were arranged. Under the Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana, accounts of about 2.5 crore girls have been opened.
Friends,
The Jan Dhan Bank accounts have become a huge medium of women empowerment in the country. If the government succeeded in transferring money directly to the bank accounts of sisters during the Corona period, it is due to the power of Jan Dhan accounts. In our country, most of the control of property remains with men. If there is a farm then it is in the name of man, if there is a shop then it is in the name of man, if there is a house then it is in the name of man, if there is a car then it is in the name of man and if there is a scooter then it is in the name of man. There is nothing in the name of the woman and if the husband passes away, the right automatically goes to the son. We have given strength to our mothers and sisters by ending this practice. Today, we give the house available under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana directly in the name of women. The woman becomes its owner. Our government has made more than two crore women of the country the owner of their house. This is a huge achievement, mothers and sisters.
Loans without guarantee to the tune of Rs 19 lakh crore have been given to small businesses across the country till now under the Mudra Yojana. Out of this, about 70 percent of the loans have been given to my mothers and sisters involved in their own ventures. I am happy that the role of women in the economic decisions of the household is increasing today due to such efforts of the government.
Friends,
The economic empowerment of women makes them equally empowered in society. Our government has opened all the doors for daughters which were closed earlier. Now daughters are also getting admission in Sainik Schools and serving the nation by becoming Police Commandos. Not only this, the daughter of India is protecting Mother India on the border by joining the army. In the last eight years, the number of women in the police force across the country has more than doubled from 1 lakh to more than 2 lakhs. Today more than 35,000 of our daughters are fighting against the enemies and terrorists of the country by joining different security forces. This number has almost doubled from eight years ago. That is, change is visible and it is in every field. I have full faith in your strength. We will surely be successful in making a better society and a strong nation with ‘Sabka Prayas’ . Today you have blessed me by coming in such large numbers. You have inspired me to do more for you. You have given me strength. I thank you very much from the bottom of my heart. Thank you very much.
Raise your both hands and speak with me with full force,
Bharat Mata ki – Jai!
Bharat Mata ki – Jai!
Bharat Mata ki – Jai!
Bharat Mata ki – Jai!
Thanks a lot!
DISCLAIMER: This is the approximate translation of PM’s speech. The original speech was delivered in Hindi.